Help please. Axolotl with something on his gill.

[SquirrelBait]

My juvenile axolotl has some kind of fungus or something on his right fill. From behind it almost looks like a circle but looking from the side it doesn’t. It’s white. My water parameters are all good. I can’t test for ammonia right now, my kit ran out but read zero on Wednesday which was only 2 days ago. I will attach pictures. Don’t know if I need to do salt or almond leaf bath or something? If that is what I need to do can you please tell me how. I’m brand new to all of this. I have no idea how this happened. I remove uneaten food and poop anytime I see it. I do a 20% water change on Wednesdays and 40% on Saturdays. I did recently start feeding blood worms in a food dish and they love them and eat them up but they’re so tiny it’s hard to find every uneaten one. I think I’ve gotten them all but I’m worried I missed one somewhere or something and maybe that caused this..? I just took out and did a rinse on my decor just in case something was hidden but it all looked fine. I have a slightly smaller/younger Axolotl in there too but I looked it over really good and don’t see anything on it. If I need to do salt or almond leaves it will take a couple days for me to get supplies, what can I do in the meantime, if anything? Thank you!

 

[SquirrelBait]

My juvenile axolotl has some kind of fungus or something on his right fill. From behind it almost looks like a circle but looking from the side it doesn’t. It’s white. My water parameters are all good. I can’t test for ammonia right now, my kit ran out but read zero on Wednesday which was only 2 days ago. I will attach pictures. Don’t know if I need to do salt or almond leaf bath or something? If that is what I need to do can you please tell me how. I’m brand new to all of this. I have no idea how this happened. I remove uneaten food and poop anytime I see it. I do a 20% water change on Wednesdays and 40% on Saturdays. I did recently start feeding blood worms in a food dish and they love them and eat them up but they’re so tiny it’s hard to find every uneaten one. I think I’ve gotten them all but I’m worried I missed one somewhere or something and maybe that caused this..? I just took out and did a rinse on my decor just in case something was hidden but it all looked fine. I have a slightly smaller/younger Axolotl in there too but I looked it over really good and don’t see anything on it. If I need to do salt or almond leaves it will take a couple days for me to get supplies, what can I do in the meantime, if anything? Thank you!

 

[axolotl nerd]

View attachment 94550View attachment 94551

i've only skimmed through this, but it looks and sounds like fungus to me.
i would tub them immediately and begin tea baths or indian almond leaf treatments.

 

[wolfen]

that is fungus use 100% holtfreters to remove and then reduce to 50% holfeters as a preventative.
info here ... Axolotls - Requirements & Water Conditions in Captivity

 

[SquirrelBait]

Thank you! I will try a salt bath first since I can get aquarium salt locally and I’ll go ahead and order the almond leaves for future use.

 

[wolfen]

if you already have aquarium salt add 2g of salt per litre to the tank water instead of doing a salt bath, if the fungus doesn't come off the the amount of salt can be increased to 3.5g per litre this should remove the fungus without causing stress, once the fungus is dealt with keep the salt level at around 2g per litre as a preventative for future fungal issues.

 

[SquirrelBait]

I had already done the salt bath before I saw your reply. Good news, I used a tub just bigger than him to transfer and let him swim into it on his own then slowly used that to put him down into the bath. He didn’t freak out or really respond at all. I only did 10 minutes at the minimum dose recommended. After one bath fungus was gone and he was already eating like he was before. Happy he’s better but definitely need the preventative. I keep the tank as clean as possible without crashing. I vacuum or suck up with a turkey baster anything that’s on the bottom every day. I just saw that I have a couple small fungus spots on a decoration that is newer than the others. I keep removing it with my tools and it seems to just come back or start somewhere else. I have a feeling this is why my buddy got it on his gills..? Being honest, I’m nervous about adding the salt to the tank because I’ve never worked with salt but it sounds like a great option. But 2g per liter sure seems like a lot in a 30 gallon? If I do this, will I just add this ratio to new water with water changes with my dechlorinater? Also will I have to get something to read the salinity? And will the sudden change of salinity put stress on them? Sorry I ask so many questions but I just want to make sure I don’t do anything wrong and hurt them. I tried to add 4 small ghost shrimp that had been in their own tank to see if they would help get rid of the trace amount of fungus I’m obviously not being able to stay on top of but they were eaten within 2 days so that didn’t do me any good. (Other than the larger one getting a treat). Would getting a larger number of the shrimp be an alternative to the salt or would my axies over eat them and not get the nutrients from the other foods in their regular diet? I wouldn’t think one or two tiny fungus spots would effect their health but I assumed wrong. I rinsed my filter media with tank water just in case the fungus was coming from there. I’ve never had fungus in any of my freshwater tanks except one with a live plant that resolved on its own and didn’t hurt anything. Not really understanding what caused this or why I’m having so much trouble getting rid of it. I’m definitely willing to use the salt once I feel like I know what exactly to do and how to keep it at the level that’s needing.

 

[wolfen]

axolotls originate from water that is slight brackish moderate to hard water and although the majority of axolotls thrive in freshwater some require salt/minerals for more info..Axolotls - Requirements & Water Conditions in Captivity , 2g salt will not affect him and is only 0.25g more than 50% holtfreters, using holtfreters solution would be best as it also includes minerals but unless you have the ingredients to hand then just salt will suffice.
the salt is added for the whole tank so 30 gallon would be approx 220g salt then the salt is replaced during a water change ie.. 25 litre water change would be 50g salt added, this would be added along with the dechlorinator prior to adding to the tank.

 

[SquirrelBait]

axolotls originate from water that is slight brackish moderate to hard water and although the majority of axolotls thrive in freshwater some require salt/minerals for more info..Axolotls - Requirements & Water Conditions in Captivity , 2g salt will not affect him and is only 0.25g more than 50% holtfreters, using holtfreters solution would be best as it also includes minerals but unless you have the ingredients to hand then just salt will suffice.
the salt is added for the whole tank so 30 gallon would be approx 220g salt then the salt is replaced during a water change ie.. 25 litre water change would be 50g salt added, this would be added along with the dechlorinator prior to adding to the tank.

Okay, thank you so much!!